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We demand the guarantee of rights for all people from the next Paraguayan president

access_timeApril 17, 2018 08:14 pm

Key public policies depend on the presidency and from SOMOSGAY we demand the full application of human rights from the next head of State. Thus we present demands in healthcare, education, work, social security, housing and transport.

In the face of current insistence of sectors opposed to science, equality before the law and full application of human rights for all people in Paraguay, we in SOMOSGAY believe that it is important to think about how a Republic functions and the protections the law guarantees for all people in the country.

On one hand, human rights are indivisible (this means that no rights are more important than others) and universal (they are for everybody without distinction). They are the foundation to enjoy decent living conditions and finally leave behind the dictatorship.

On the other hand, claims for a legislation that protects us and guarantees equality before the law correspond to the legislative and judicial power. Even though the executive power’s role allows it to veto laws, the responsibility to generate this legislation does not correspond to the presidency. Nevertheless, there are public policies that DO depend on the presidency that we in SOMOSGAY stand for and demand.

First of all, what are human rights?

“Human rights establish essential conditions to guarantee human dignity and to allow people to live in an environment of freedom, justice and peace. Human rights deal with the principle of equality, right to life, right to be free from torture, the right to asylum, freedom of speech and consciousness, but also right to education, housing, access to healthcare and culture”, explains Amnesty International in its website in Spanish.

If we would like to know more about Human Rights we recommend the following sources in English:

Paraguay has historical debts with human rights. This country is incapable of guaranteeing minimal rights and adequate life conditions to all its inhabitants. Worse yet, in our country there are second class citizens that lack all types of rights: LGBT people among others. This situation occurs even though the National Constitution establishes in its Article 46 that all people are equal.

Economic, social and cultural rights are human rights which address healthcare, food, education, housing, culture, science, work and rest as fundamental and essential rights that States must guarantee.

We in SOMOSGAY demand from the future President the compliance of these legal instruments the country has signed and ratified. Furthermore, we demand the implementation of these legal instruments for all population without any discriminations by sexual orientation, gender, social class, ethnicity, religion or any other reason.

Regarding the response to HIV epidemic, we demand greater efforts from the State to prevent and also to provide a public and free attention without any violence and discrimination with more focus towards the most vulnerable populations such as gay men, bisexual men and trans women. We also claim our right to access the latest technologies in prevention, attention and treatment such as PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis), condoms, lubes and the best cocktail therapy.

Education

According to UNICEF, in Paraguay 6 children out of 10 do not finish school: this situation places us in a real emergency and keeps us in backwardness and obscurantism. We stress that one of the global sustainable development objectives is access to quality education.

Thus, we urge the new Presidency the implementation of a universal, scientific, public, free, secular and quality education starting at early childhood and comprising university as well. Education is a fundamental human right and an essential requirement both for our country’s development and for the construction of a fairer and equalitarian society free from violence and discrimination.

Housing and transport

Another emergency we have is the absence of public policies which guarantee access to housing without discriminations and in decent conditions. We have a housing shortage of 1,000,000 houses, and around 40 and 45 % of this number corresponds to Asuncion and Gran Asuncion.

We Paraguayan families lack access to housing; therefore, situations such as overcrowding and precariousness are usual. There is also discrimination that impedes LGBT people access to housing.

In Paraguay most families live in remote places, without public utilities such as electricity, water and without public transport. We also demand a quality and polymodal public transport system which allows us an optimal quality of life.

Work and social security

In our country economic growth does not translate into jobs creation, better quality of jobs nor social security. Only 41. 7 % of workers contribute to a retirement system and 37.4 % of workers earn less than minimum wage. Informality is high.

We must stress out discrimination: there is a considerable salary gap between men and women, there is legal discrimination towards domestic workers and violence towards LGBT people impedes especially trans women access to their right to work and people living with HIV face discrimination when applying for a job or in their workplaces.

In SOMOSGAY we’re inspired by the phrase of our fellow Carlos Jáuregui: “In a society that teaches us to shame, pride is a political response”, thus we reject all symbolic violence in the demagogy exhibited by candidates Efrain Alegre and Mario Abdo Benitez and we reaffirm our commitment towards building a democracy which respects and promotes rights for all Paraguayan families.

Finally, SOMOSGAY rejects irresponsible promotion of prejudices against LGBT people in Paraguay as an electoral strategy and we reaffirm our determination in working every day until all people and all families have access to all rights.